Once they called them popular prices: Edilnol set the first ticket of the season at 5 euros in order to have as many fans as possible next to the team in their debut in an official match on Saturday. The intersection between Biella and Jb Monferrato will be played at 5.30 pm at the Forum in front of no more than 1,750 spectators, 35% of the capacity of the plant. But all the seats are unlikely to fill, even if hunger and thirst for live basketball are the heavy side effect of a year and a half of pandemic. The restrictions on access, against which the galaxy of Italian basketball ultras has promised battle, and the fact that the presale will only be via the internet, through the Vivaticket platform, weigh heavily. The tickets will be available for purchase from tomorrow morning, but the reminder for all fans is that you can only enter with the Green pass, satisfying one of the three conditions that allow you to obtain it: a negative tampon made within 48 hours before the two-man ball, a certificate of recovery from Covid-19 in the last six months or more simply the completed vaccination course. Once you have crossed the threshold of the Forum, after checking the pass, spectators must remember to keep the mask well worn until the exit door, after the game is over.
The rules for safely resuming competitions with the public do not appeal to many. If in Serie A Virtus Bologna has threatened not to even take the field if you do not go up to at least 50 percent of the capacity, the organized supporters of half of Italy (including Biella) have announced a strike. Their requests are summarized in the banner hanging outside the building on Saturday, before the friendly match with Borgomanero: “100 percent capacity, we ran out of patience”. A potential “full house”, obviously, which in any case includes the obligation of the Green pass to reconcile public and safety. The uncertainty about percentages and the future has also postponed the season ticket campaign of many clubs, including Edilnol. The ultras on Saturday will still show up in the Barlera curve: but no choirs, waved scarves or choreographies. It will be a somewhat fuller but silent forum.